A look at some of the deadliest floods in the US in the last 25 years
Texas, July 2025: Authorities are still assessing the deadly effects of heavy rains that caused devastating flash floods in Texas Hill Country, leaving at least 32 people dead and many others missing as frantic parents sought word about their daughters unaccounted for at a girls' camp near the Guadalupe River. Searchers used helicopters, boats, and drones to look for victims and to rescue stranded people in trees and from camps isolated by washed-out roads.
Hurricane Helene, 2024: Hurricane Helene struck Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Tennessee, and Virginia in September 2024. The storm caused about 250 deaths, according to the National Weather Service. Many of those who died in Helene fell victim to massive inland flooding rather than high winds. Helene was the deadliest hurricane to hit the mainland US since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The storm decimated remote towns throughout the Appalachians and left millions without power, cellular service, and supplies. In North Carolina alone, Helene was responsible for 108 deaths, according to the state's Department of Health and Human Services.
Kentucky, 2022: Raging floodwaters in eastern Kentucky in late July of 2022 led to 45 deaths, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Tyler Roys said Saturday. The floods destroyed homes and businesses and caused significant damage to schools, roads, bridges, and water systems. The disaster robbed thousands of families of all their possessions.
Tennessee, 2021: Twenty people were killed when creeks near the small Middle Tennessee town of Waverly overflowed after more than 17 inches (43 centimeters) of rain fell in the area in less than 24 hours in August 2021. Homes were washed off their foundations, cars were wrecked, and businesses were demolished. The dead included twin babies who were swept from their father's arms.
Hurricane Harvey, 2017: Hurricane Harvey barreled into Texas in August 2017 as a powerful Category 4 storm. Harvey hovered for days as it trudged inland, dumping several feet of rain on many Gulf Coast communities and the Houston area. Harvey killed at least 68 people, according to a National Hurricane Center report. All but three of the Harvey deaths were directly attributed to freshwater flooding, which damaged more than 300,000 structures and caused an estimated $125 billion in damage.
West Virginia, June 2016: A rainstorm that initially seemed like no big deal turned into a catastrophe in West Virginia, trapping dozens of people during the night and eventually leaving 23 people dead around the state.
Superstorm Sandy, 2012: Superstorm Sandy was a late-fall, freak combination of a hurricane and other storms that struck New York and surrounding areas in October 2012. Sandy killed 147 people–72 in the eastern US, according to the National Hurricane Center. More than 110 deaths were attributed to drowning, Roys said.
Mississippi River, 2011: Heavy rainfall in several states, plus a larger-than-normal, slow melt, led rivers in the Mississippi River Basin to swell and flood in 2011. Flash floods associated with these storms caused 24 deaths across Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Tennessee in April and May, according to the National Weather Service.
Hurricane Ike, 2008: Hurricane Ike struck the southeast Texas Gulf Coast in September 2008, creating a storm surge as high as 20 feet (6 meters) in the island city of Galveston. Ike then poured more than 4 feet (1.2 meters) of rain on Houston, destroying thousands of cars and leaving hundreds of thousands of families with flood-damaged homes. In all, Ike was responsible for more than 100 deaths, many caused by flooding.
Hurricane Katrina, 2005: Hurricane Katrina is the deadliest flood event in the US in the past 25 years. The storm crashed into the Gulf Coast and caused devastating flooding when levees failed in New Orleans, where people had to be rescued by boat and helicopter from rooftops. The costliest storm in US history, Katrina caused nearly 1,400 deaths and an estimated $200 billion in damages.
Tropical Storm Allison, 2001: Tropical Storm Allison caused 41 deaths, mostly attributed to flooding caused by 40 inches (101 centimeters) of rain that fell in Texas and Louisiana, Roys said. Allison remained a threat for days as its remnants lingered after making landfall in June 2001, causing major flooding in Houston.
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